Build automation with AI.

1. Step 01

   Install Claude Code

   Claude Code is the anchor of the whole setup — you build and import your workflows with it. If you've done the „Build products with AI“ cluster, this is nothing new. Install via the terminal, in VS Code, or alongside in the desktop app.

   bash·Install via terminal

   Kopieren

   npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

   Claude Code download and docs
2. Step 02

   Pick an automation tool — n8n, Make or Zapier

   Three sensible options. n8n (open source, official MCP server, self-hostable) — our pick if you want to generate workflows with Claude Code. Make.com (SaaS, visual editor, huge integration library) — good if you think visually and don't want self-hosting. Zapier (8,000+ integrations, friendliest onboarding) — good if you just want to connect a few apps without digging in deeper. For DACH/EU all three offer EU regions. For AI-driven workflow generation, n8n stays ahead.

   n8n.io
3. Step 03

   Connect an MCP for your tool

   With an MCP server, Claude Code reads and writes directly in your workflow instance — generates workflow JSON, imports it, tests trigger payloads. As of May 2026: n8n has the official n8n MCP. Make and Zapier don't have an official MCP — those you build manually in the editor and only use Claude Code for the logic planning. Snippet below is for n8n.

   bash·n8n MCP connected to Claude Code (if you picked n8n)

   Kopieren

   claude mcp add n8n --transport http \
     "https://YOUR-N8N-DOMAIN/mcp" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_N8N_API_KEY"

   n8n MCP repo on GitHub
4. Step 04

   Pick hosting

   Pick a cloud where you host yourself. Self-hosted is cheaper than managed cloud and gives you full control over data and workflows. With Make or Zapier you don't get the choice — those run cloud-managed only.

   Our pick: Hetzner Cloud, from €5/month

   CX22 (2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM), EU region Falkenstein or Nuremberg. n8n + Postgres + Caddy as a Docker Compose stack, Claude Code rolls it out initially. Same thing works on DigitalOcean, AWS Lightsail or Scaleway — Hetzner wins on price-performance.

   Hetzner CloudHetzner setup in detail

Example: Claude Code generates the social-media-reels automation

You hand Claude Code the workflow briefing from the planning phase and say:

Read social-media-reels-workflow.md and build an n8n workflow from it.
The workflow takes a one-pager input (headline, body, image assets, hashtags)
and automatically generates a reel video for Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.

[Alex delivers: detailed workflow steps — trigger, AI calls for script
and voiceover, asset generation via Remotion or video API, posting targets
with auth setup, logging, and error handling.]

Import the workflow directly into our n8n instance via MCP.
Also write a README.md with a trigger payload example and edge cases.

Claude Code reads your briefing, generates the JSON, calls the n8n MCP, imports the workflow, hands you back the n8n editor link. You check visually, click „Activate“. Done.

Cost comparison

Minimal Docker Compose stack

n8n runs as a Docker container next to Postgres and Caddy. Caddy handles HTTPS automatically via Let's Encrypt — you don't have to configure any certificates.

services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:16
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: n8n
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${POSTGRES_PASSWORD}
      POSTGRES_DB: n8n
    volumes:
      - postgres_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data

  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      DB_TYPE: postgresdb
      DB_POSTGRESDB_HOST: postgres
      DB_POSTGRESDB_DATABASE: n8n
      DB_POSTGRESDB_USER: n8n
      DB_POSTGRESDB_PASSWORD: ${POSTGRES_PASSWORD}
      N8N_HOST: ${N8N_HOST}
      N8N_PROTOCOL: https
      WEBHOOK_URL: https://${N8N_HOST}/
      GENERIC_TIMEZONE: Europe/Berlin
    depends_on:
      - postgres
    volumes:
      - n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n

  caddy:
    image: caddy:2-alpine
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
    volumes:
      - ./Caddyfile:/etc/caddy/Caddyfile
      - caddy_data:/data
      - caddy_config:/config

volumes:
  postgres_data:
  n8n_data:
  caddy_data:
  caddy_config:

Let Claude Code roll out the setup on the server. Add SSH key, clone the repo, [docker compose up -d]. A backup cron is part of it — Claude writes the script along with it.

If you don't know how all of this works, just ask Claude Code: it knows the stack, walks you through step by step and corrects you when you mistype. You don't have to remember any of it — you only have to describe what should run at the end.